NEWS

Every year, hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals are admitted to Canada as “temporary residents”. These may be tourists who are visiting under a visitor visa or an electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) if they are from a visa-exempt country. They may be students or workers in Canada temporarily. While many applicants are most concerned about the eligibility requirements to obtain such temporary visas to enter Canada, it is extremely important for temporary residents to understand the legal nature of their stay in Canada in order to maintain their status and ensure that they do not become inadmissible to Canada by breaching any conditions on their type of visa.

Having legal status means you are authorized to enter and remain in Canada as a temporary or permanent resident under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, as a Canadian citizen under the Citizenship Act or as a Registered Indian under the Indian Act. In the case of temporary residents, your status is valid for a specific period of time that is set out in your visa, study or work permit.

Apply for an extension before you lose your statusEach type of temporary visa has a different duration. For example a study permit may be for the duration of your studies in Canada. A work permit may be for the duration of the contract of employment you have with your employer in Canada. In the case of visitors you are generally permitted to stay in Canada for up to 6 months from the date of your entry (unless the officer indicates at the time of your entry that you are permitted to remain in Canada for a shorter period of time).

Irrespective of the type of temporary status you hold, you should be careful of the duration and ensure that you take appropriate steps to extend you status before your status expires. For example, if your studies are taking longer than your original study permit, you can apply to extend your study permit. In the case of visitors, you will need to leave Canada before six months or, if there is a reason why you need to remain in Canada, it is possible to apply for an extension of your status before the six months is up.What if you miss the deadline to extend you status?In some situations you may not be able to apply to extend your visa or apply for a new visa in time. Depending on your circumstances this may create serious problems with regards to your ability to extend your study permit or work permit and may even impact your eligibility for future visas. However, if you have missed your deadline to apply for a renewal by only a few days, there is a window of opportunity to be able to apply to restore your status for up to 90 days from the date of expiration of your visa or permit

A restoration application is very important as you must explain the circumstances that prevented you from complying with the conditions of your permit and you must meet all the conditions of your initial visa or permit. Applications are processed on a case-by-case basis and the 90 day deadline is very rigid. If you have missed your deadline you should immediately consult an experienced immigration lawyer to understand your options.Application To Return to Canada (ARC)In some cases, where a temporary resident has overstayed his or her authorized period to remain in Canada or did not comply with the conditions of his or her stay, the resident may be issued with a removal order. If you are issued with a removal order (which may be a departure order, deportation order or exclusion order) then you may no longer stay in Canada and it may also result in you becoming inadmissible for re-entry to Canada.Depending on the reason you receive on the removal order you may be able to appeal the decision. However, once a removal order is final, in most cases you will need a special permission called an Authorization to Return to Canada (“ARC”) before you will be allowed to re-enter Canada.ARC applications require that you demonstrate that there is a low possibility that you will repeat the behaviour that caused the order to be issued in the first place and your current situation as well as the reason you have for returning to Canada. The officer will also consider the reasons for which the removal order was issued and the amount of time that has passed since the order was issued. There is no guarantee that an ARC will be issued and by having the assistance of an experienced immigration lawyer you will be able to navigate the process and ensure that you submit the best application possible and have the highest chance of success.

When you are approved for immigration to Canada you will receive a Confirmation of Permanent Residence, and if you require a visa to travel to Canada you will receive a visa stamp in your passport. But when do you actually become a permanent resident (PR) of Canada? What process do you have to go through and how can you prepare for your first time entry to Canada as a new permanent resident?

Below are the top 5 tips I provide to clients who are preparing for their landing in Canada for the first time as new immigrants:1) Plan your landing date and locationYou do not become a PR when you receive your approval of your immigration application. When your permanent residence application is approved you will receive a “Confirmation of Permanent Residence” and a visa sticker in your passport allowing you to enter Canada to land. The visa sticker will provide a time frame during which you can land. You must make arrangements to land in Canada before the expiry date of the visa otherwise you may lose your visa and have to restart the whole immigration process. You only become a PR when you cross a Canadian port of entry with your passport and Confirmation of PR documents and you are processed as a new immigrant to Canada.

Once you know the date you have to land you should also determine where you want to land. You can enter Canada through any airport or border crossing to undertake your landing process. All Canadian Permanent Residents and Citizens have mobility rights that are part of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms, allowing them to move freely between the provinces of Canada.

However, you should not that you may have obligations to comply with if you applied for immigration through a provincial program (either Quebec or one of the provincial nominee programs). Typically if it is not possible to land directly in the province of your destination you then can land in one airport and then fly to your province of destination after the landing process has been completed.

There is currently a pilot program in place for applicants who are living in Canada when their immigration application is approved that allows them to undertake the “landing process” in a telephone interview with an Immigration officer rather than having to travel to a border. This program makes it much simpler and faster for you to achieve PR status when your immigration application is approved. As it is a pilot program it is only available to applicants in Canada and we will have to wait to see if this program will be extended to other applicants as well.

2) Understand who has to land firstWhen you have a family that needs to land, you can either all land at the same time or the primary applicant in the immigration application must land first before the other family members can land separately. It is not possible for dependants to land before the primary applicant but there is no requirement that everyone must land together. Therefore, as long as the primary applicant lands first, the other family members can land separately before the expiry of their visas.

It is also very important to note that you are required to update the information related to your status up until the time you land in Canada. For example if there is any change in your marital status or you have a new child between the time your visa is approved and the time you land you should inform Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) immediately. At the latest, you must declare such a change at the time of you land in Canada.

This is extremely important because witholding such information may be determined to be a misrepresentation that could later result in the loss of your PR status. Further, in some cases where new family members are not declared in can result in a situation where the family member (new spouse or new child) becomes an excluded family member and cannot be later sponsored to join you in Canada. If your situation is complicated it is best to seek legal advice before you make plans to land to ensure you provide complete and accurate information and avoid potential misrepresentation or exclusion of family members.

3) Documents to bring with yourselfThere are a series of documents that you must have with yourself at the time of landing:

Passports

Confirmation of Permanent Residence – these are in duplicate and issued to you at the time your immigration application is approved

Proof of funds (if your immigration application required this)

Lists for Customs - “Personal Effects Accounting Document” - this consists of two lists: goods that accompany you and goods to follow later

In addition you may also prepare and bring the following documents with you that may be needed after you land in Canada. If any documents are not already translated you can obtain official translations before you come or have them translated after you arrive in Canada:

Immunization Record for dependent children – this will be required to enrol your children in school

Official school records for children

Educational diplomas, degrees and transcripts as well as any qualification certificates or trade licences

Work reference letters from previous employers

Driver's licence or international driving licence

Health and dental records

If you are immigrating to Quebec you will need your Quebec Selection Certificates to access services in Quebec

Make sure that the documents you are bringing with you are in your hand bag and not checked into luggage. There is always a risk that your luggage may be lost or delayed which may prevent you from being processed by the Immigration officers when you arrive in Canada.

Finally, before you leave for Canada you may consider preparing and signing a power of attorney with a trusted family member or friend to follow up any outstanding matters after you leave.

4) Find temporary accommodationWhile you may choose to stay in a hotel for the first few days after you arrive you can try to find furnished apartment rentals for the short term for your first few months. This will allow you to get to know the areas in the city before you enter a long term rental agreement or buy a house. You can use online websites such as www.airbnb.ca or www.kijiji.ca to try to find suitable short term accommodation.

5) Address in Canada for Permanent Residence Card If you already have a place that you will be staying when you arrive in Canada (a short term rental or a family or friend's home) you can provide this address at the time of landing for your permanent resident card (PR Card) to be mailed to you. Make sure that you have the complete and correct address including apartment numbers and post codes. One of the main problems that causes delays in obtaining your PR Card is an incorrect or incomplete address so check the address and make sure it is correct. If you do not have an address at the time of landing, you will need to inform Immigration of your new address after you have obtained accommodation so that your PR Card can be processed.

Once you receive your PR Card you will be able to use it to re-enter Canada after any trip that you take overseas. It will be your responsibility to ensure that you meet the conditions for keeping your PR Card and being able to renew it in the future. I advise all clients, particulary those who travel a lot, to keep a complete list of all their travels after they become landed in Canada (and if possible copies of tickets and boarding passes). This accurate list will be invaluable when you later want to renew their PR Card to apply for Canadian citizenship as the stamps in your passport may not fully document the dates that you have entered and left Canada.

For many who immigrate to Canada, they soon become familiar with a very Canadian phenomenon: piles and piles of paper records! Immigration officers and various government offices begin to give you documents. You accumulate documents when you open bank accounts, apply for credit cards, sign a lease or buy a home. And the piles of paper just keeps getting higher each month as you receive new bills and statements. But the key questions is: which of these documents should you keep and which will be required as proof of your immigration status or as part of any future applications you make to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)?

1. Confirmation of Permanent Residence or Record of Landing The Confirmation of Permanent Residence or Record of Landing is the document that is processed and issued to you when you land in Canada for the first time as an immigrant. It is an important proof of your status as a landed immigrant in Canada and you will need it to apply for your Social Insurance Number, provincial health card and driver's licence. However, long after you become a citizen of Canada, you may still need your Record of Landing and therefore you should make keep the original in a safe place. If you lose your Record of Landing you must apply for a “Verification of Landing” document. Currently it takes on average 6 months to process your request so you should plan carefully if you need a replacement document.

2. Copies of Application Forms and Courier Tracking Records I often meet with applicants that want me to follow up their status of their application with IRCC. Whether it is an application for a particular visa, renewal of a PR Card or application for citizenship, the first step is to review their application forms that you have submitted. Therefore it is critical that you keep a copy of all application forms that you submit to IRCC for any kind of application. If your representative or lawyer submits an application on your behalf, you can ask them to provide you with a copy of the application forms for your records.

Equally important is the record of the courier and the courier confirmation of delivery for packages that you send to IRCC. In some cases we must prove that you submitted documents and that those documents were submitted within the deadline provided and the best evidence is the courier records. With the increasing use of electronic submissions and emails, you should also make sure that you keep your e-records and email accounts in case you need to refer to documents submitted online or by email.

3. Record of all Your Trips for PR Card Renewal and Citizenship ApplicationsCanada does not always stamp your passport when you enter the country and never stamps your passport when you leave. This presents a serious challenge if you have taken trips and want to apply to renew your PR card or apply for citizenship because you have to provide details of all your trips for the preceding 5 years. The best advice is to create a table and record all of your trips, the dates you left Canada, where you went, and the date you returned to Canada as well as any special notes about the trip. Trying to remember everything accurately after 5 years is very difficult and this table will save you much time and stress, especially since many countries do not stamp your passport to record your entry and exit.

In case of trips taken by plane you can also keep copies of your tickets or boarding passes. And in all cases you should keep your old passports as IRCC requires copies of your old passports at the time you apply to renew your PR Card, apply for a Permanent Resident Travel Document or apply for Canadian citizenship. Other important documents that you should keep as evidence of your physical residence in Canada include school records for your children, work records for yourself and copies of lease agreements and title deeds.

4. Tax Filings and Notice of AssessmentsWhether you prepare your own taxes or use the services of an accountant, you should keep copies of your tax filings and any supporting documents that you provide such as T4s or T5s. Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has specific rules for how many years you must keep your records and you can ask your accountant about this. In addition to your tax filings you should keep copies of your Notice of Assessments issued each year as well as documents demonstrating that you have paid any amounts outstanding to the CRA.

5. Keep Originals Safe and Copies Accessible Just like other important documents such as marriage and birth certificates, you need to keep your original immigration documents such as your Record of Landing or PR Card in a safe place. When you have to use your documents while you travel, you should make copies of your important documents and if possible leave copies with family members in case your original documents are lost or stolen. And remember your copies need not be physical copies and can be electronic copies that you store safely on a portable device or online. ​

Note: This information is not intended as legal advice or opinion. You should always seek specialized legal advice with regards to your situation as the facts of each case are unique and the application of law varies in every case.